German World War 2 Propaganda Posters

The museum did a great job of showcasing the horrors of violence that German has encountered without demonizing the German people. Which is a pretty monumental achievement, and the result of some really well curated displays and well written history.

Foolishly, I only have the caption for the first poster. The other was identified via image searches.

Recruiting poster for volunteers for the Waffen SS, 1941.
The text reads: “Waffen SS. Join at 17 or older.” The principle of cecruiting volunteers only, which was maintained for many yers, was partially abandoned as a result of the expansion of the Waffen SS and heavy losses in the latter years of the war.

(Topography of Terror, Berlin)

KDF-Wagen sales brochure, from 1938

The Beetle, or KDF-Wagen as it was initially known, can trace its ancestry prior to WW2, when this catalogue was printed. The idea was to offer the German populace a chance to own their own set of wheels, via a stamps saving scheme. A huge factory was built at what would become the town of Wolfsburg, and production commenced of the new “Volkswagens” (literally translated as “people’s-cars”). The war interrupted civilian production somewhat, but resumed afterwards thanks to the efforts of the British Army to get production back on track. During the war, militarised versions, the Kübelwagen and the Schwimmwagen, were produced for the German military.